What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
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didn't know much about Parker until he was cast to portray him in Foley's film. "I knew a few bits and pieces, primarily through a few articles, movies and books like 'True Grit,' and his reputation as the infamous 'Hanging Judge,'" Rogers says. "I learned that he served 21 years, presided over almost 13,500 cases, sentenced 160 to death — of which around 80 or so were executed. "Judge Parker was a fascinating man of many layers and, in my opinion, a good man who had a most difficult job." "Judge Parker is a complicated, complex and at times, contradictory personality," Foley appends. "The city was so sick of his sordid fame as the hanging judge that the mayor ordered the gallows burned down following his death. But that wasn't the end of the story. [In 2019] Fort Smith dedicated a statue in his honor, celebrating Judge Parker, the community citizen. "The stories of Indian removal that resulted in the federal court, the outlaws and the marshals — they are all remarkably American," Foley adds. "You always start with a good story, and I knew we had that — a treasure chest full of them." So Foley undertook his research "with what we academics call the 'literature' review." "I read every book, newspaper article and story I could get my hands on," he recalls. "I poured through documents and web pages and archives. I scoured for old photographs and films. When I came across the St. Louis Republic story from Sept. 6, 1896, written by Ada Patterson, I thought, 'This might be the hook.' I found the entire story archived at the Museum of Missouri History in St. Louis; the museum sent the microfilm to the UA Library; and when reading it, I instantly knew, 'Yes! This is it!'" Patterson, says Foley, was a 29-year- old reporter "known for covering sensational stories." During her visit to Fort Smith, she interviewed Parker's hangman, George Maledon, a jailer, a guard "and other characters that must have been hanging around the courthouse when she was in town," he says. "I decided to tell the story in first person, beginning with a reenactment of Ada Patterson interviewing the infamous judge," Foley explains. "Both Parker and Patterson were gripping story tellers. It's not by accident that I decided Ada Patterson should narrate the story in first person, using her own words, much like the fictional Mattie Ross narrates the novel — and films — 'True Grit.'" Foley sought out California actress Jennica Schwartzman, who has appeared in Arkansas-made films "Gordon Family Tree," "The Man In The Trunk" and "Parker's Anchor," to portray Patterson. "I had the joy and pleasure of reading Ada Patterson's real words," she marvels. "I just can't believe how much history we get to experience with her news story. Reading Ms. Patterson's words, wearing period- accurate clothing, riding the trolley, walking in her footsteps, taking a walking tour she wrote specifically for me over 100 years later — it was all pretty overwhelming and the richest experience I've ever experienced on a film set. Larry Foley's dedication to historical accuracy as well as his commitment to the artists to bring that journey to life in our own time with his full support — he really is a treasure of a storyteller." PRESIDENT Brent A. Powers EDITOR Becca Martin-Brown 479-872-5054 bmartin@nwadg.com Twitter: NWAbecca REPORTER Lara Hightower 479-365-2913 lhightower@nwadg.com DESIGNER Deb Harvell ! UP WHAT'S The Momentary's new original temporary exhibition "In Some Form or Fashion" brings together the work of six contemporary artists to explore the cultural implications of fashion and how identities are shaped by the garments individuals purchase, wear and discard. The exhibition will be on display through March 27 at the Bentonville venue. (COURTESY PHOTO/IRONSIDE PHOTOGRAPHY / STEPHEN IRONSIDE, COURTESY OF THE MOMENTARY) What's Up! is a publication of the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. DECEMBER 19-25, 2021 WHAT'S UP! 37 YEAR IN REVIEW UPDATE Larry Foley's "Indians, Outlaws, Marshals and the Hangin' Judge" was a selection for the Fort Smith International Film Festival in August 2021, where it won Best Western Film, but that's just the tip of the iceberg that is the film's success. The feature-length documen- tary has been screened around the world at some two dozen international film festivals — winning top awards from the Wild West Film Festival in Cali- fornia, three awards including grand prize from News Fest International in Las Vegas, and awards from Bare Bones, Sunny Side Up, Cowpokes and several other festivals. Foley won the Mid-America Emmy Award for Director: Short Form or Long Form Content during a virtual gala Oct. 23. And Tubi will premier "Indians, Outlaws, Marshals and the Hangin' Judge" Jan. 17, making it available to some 40 million viewers. In conjunction with the Univer- sity of Arkansas' 150th anniver- sary, Foley is currently producing a feature-length documentary, "If This Walk Could Talk," which will premier Feb. 10 at the Faulkner Center on campus, but what comes after that is a "good ques- tion," Foley says. "I'm stepping down as chair of the School of Journalism and Strategic Media at the end of the spring 2022 semester. That will complete an eight-year run, and as much as I've enjoyed it, it's time. I'll still teach, which I love, [and] I'm considering a few films, looking for something challenging and fun that I can devote a couple of years to making. I love Ameri- can history, and am always drawn to compelling stories that have escaped mainstream knowledge." Filmmaker Larry Foley directs Jennica Schwartzman in a scene from "Indians, Outlaws, Marshals and the Hangin' Judge" shot in Fayetteville. (Courtesy Photo/James Brewer) Bill Rogers portrays Isaac C. Parker, the 19th century Fort Smith jurist known as the "hanging judge," and Jennica Schwartzman is Ada Patterson, a reporter for the St. Louis Republic who came to interview him on his deathbed, in Larry Foley's new film, "Indians, Outlaws, Marshals and the Hangin' Judge." (Courtesy Photo/James Brewer) Judge Continued From Page 7